The invention relates to a seat structure and more particularly to a vehicle seat structure having a one-piece flexible shell used for the seating surface and a one-piece flexible shell for the backrest, each shell having dampening means provided between the shell and the seat frame.
Seats used in automobiles, trucks, and other vehicles may be relatively complex structures. Conventional vehicle seats included a structural frame, springs, and padding that are upholstered with cloth, leather or vinyl. New developments in vehicle seat design have lead to incorporating foam and other engineering materials to eliminate inner spring construction. Generally, a specially contoured frame is covered with foam on all sides and a complex cover is fabricated to encase the entire vehicle seat structure with cloth, leather or vinyl.
Vehicle seats must meet standards for strength and durability. In addition, vehicle seats must offer design flexibility to allow them to be adapted to various passenger compartment configurations, adjustment mechanisms, and other accessories. Vehicle seats must also allow for efficient utilization of expensive seating fabrics and leather treatments that are frequently demanded by consumers.
Other important considerations in vehicle seat design are cost constraints. Vehicle seat designs should maximize efficient use of materials and ideally reduce labor requirements to provide maximum value.
It would be desirable to produce a vehicle seat structure which minimizes the complexity of the seat design and while maximizing passenger comfort.
Consistent and consonant with the present invention, a vehicle seat structure which minimizes the complexity of the seat design and while maximizing passenger comfort has surprisingly been discovered.
The vehicle seat structure comprises a support frame adapted to be connected to a vehicle frame; a seating surface portion connected to the support frame, the seating surface portion including a seating surface shell; a backrest portion pivotally connected to at least one of the support frame and the seating surface portion, the backrest portion including a backrest frame and a backrest shell; a plurality of seating dampener structures connecting the seating surface shell to the support frame to permit relative movement therebetween; and a plurality of backrest dampener structures connecting the backrest shell to the backrest frame to permit relative movement therebetween.